In 1974, far out in the Pacific, a U.S. ship pretending to be a
deep-sea mining vessel fished a sunken Soviet nuclear-armed submarine
out of the ocean depths, took what it could of the wreck and made off
to Hawaii with its purloined prize.

Now, Washington is owning up
to Project Azorian, a brazen mission from the days of high-stakes --
and high-seas -- Cold War rivalry.